Bust support



April 26, 1949. L. L. POLK ETAL BUS'JI SUPPORT Filed Feb. 19, 1947 Patented Apr. 26, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

Our invention relates to apparel for womens Wear and it has for its object to provide a structure which serves both as a support and means of adornment of the bosom thus serving as a foundation for outer garments be the latter simply a brassiere, a dress or similar article of wearing apparel.

Another object of our invention is to provide a support or so-called uplift of light weight material molded to match a wearers figure and which is capable of use as a shaping foundation for the fabric of which a brassiere, corset, swimming suit or dress is constructed, said support being adapted for ready application to and detachment from such garments.

Moreover our invention is susceptible to being formed in parts applicable to each breast or as a single article of duplicate parts pivotally united by connecting members also shaped to hug the torso and emphasize the curved line between the breasts yet allow perfect freedom of bodily movement.

To these and other ends our invention comprehends further improvements in the arrangements of the elements comprising a bust support all as will be fully described in the accompanying specification, the novel features thereof being set forth in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective View showing one form of a bust support embodying our invention.

Figure 2 is a detail view in elevation of a single bust supporting element.

Figure 3 is a view in elevation showing two of such elements connected and located within an article of dress which for the purpose of illus tration is shown as a brassiere.

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on the line A-A of Fig. 2.

Figure 5 is an enlarged plan view in detail of the jointed connection between two breast supports.

Figures 6 and '7 are detail views showing the connecting members disassociated to illustrate the manner in which they are detachably united and Figure 8 is an edge view of the overlapping ends of the connecting members somewhat enlarged to show the tabs which interlock them.

Similar reference characters in the several figurea indicate similar parts.

A bust support embodying our invention comprises two elements which may be either separate parts, one for each breast, or two similar parts either permanently connected or detachably united. In the two latter instances the article may be provided with suitable straps and Worn directly in contact with the body. It is preferable however in each of the forms mentioned to employ them as forms for giving the desired shape to the fabric of a body garment. To this end the support is shaped to fit within breast enlargements tailored in the garment and detachably connected thereto in which event the support is caused to cling to the wearers body by the fit of the garment per so.

In Figs. 1 and 3 we have shown, as an example of garment, a brassiere designed with the right or left bremt pockets 1c and H which is secured by the encircling body strap, or breast band, the ends it and [3 of which are secured together at the back. It also has the usual shoulder straps it and I5. Figure 3 is an inside view of the above described garment.

A bust supporting element made in accordance with our invention comprises a unit, or shield l6 (Fig. 2), made of light weight material, such as plastic, curved transversely to fit the desired or natural curve of the underside of the breast.

It is mounted on a narrower underlying torso engaging member ll. The latter is curved laterally to fit the body below the fold or point of juncture of the breast and torso. The part it is thickened slightly toward its lower edge as shown at E3 in Fig. 4 and this thickness is carried into the neck it which connects it with the part ll to furnish added strength and support along the underside of the breast. The ends 2il2l of the torso member extend laterally at each side of the neck Iii for a purpose to be later explained. The ends of the shield It each extend beyond the ends of the torso member and one of these, such as which lies adjacent the median line of the body is shorter than the other while the ?atter, indicated by 23, is also designed of a length to extend around the outer side of the breast and upwardly thereon so that its upper edge is somewhat higher than the corresponding edge of the inner lobe, said two edges being connected by a downwardly sweeping curve 25.

The peripheries of the parts It and H are covered with latex, as indicated in dotted lines and designated by 25 in Figs. 2 and 4, or these edges may be thickened and rounded slightly on the inner sides for the purpose of comfort as well as to give an added clinging quality to the points of contact with the wearer's body. To provide for ventilation there are perforations 26 formed in the lobes 22 and 23. The latter are also provided with pairs of slots as indicated at M -23* for receiving ribbons 26 used as means for attaching the support to a garment. However if desired these ribbons, or a single ribbon beaded or passed through the slots of both supports may be extended at their ends to encircle the body of the wearer and secure the supports firmly in place,

The aforedescribed elements are of course used in pairs and as such according to one aspect of our invention they will be united. This may be a single connecting member such as shown in Fig. 3, or two arms 3l overlapping at their ends or jointed as shown in Fig. 5. In either instance the connection is arched as indicated at 21 and extends from the proximate ends of the torso members I! and is shaped to follow the inward curves of the adjacent under sides of the two breasts. In this way it is made to lie closely against the intervening portion of the body of the wearer slightly in rear of the proximate ends of the torso members. Beneath the arch is a pendent tab 28 connected thereto by a narrowed neck 29.

In the preferred construction of the connecting arch we form separate arms 30-3l on the right and left torso members ll the free ends of which overlap and are detachably pivotally united. This joint is uniquely formed by providing one of the arms with a circular aperture 32 and cutting in the other arm tabs 33-34 which project in opposite directions and by reason of the flexibility of the material may be bent into parallelism, at right angles to the plane of the arm and inserted in the aperture 32. When this has been accomplished and the tabs are released they become interlocked with the periphery of the aperture and serve to hold the free ends of the arms in flat engagement with each other as shown in Fig. 8.

The supports for the breasts hereindescribed will function as a form capable of being readily fitted within the pockets tailored in a garment and fashioned to a womans figure. In cases where single elements are used they may be secured in place by slipping the torso member I! through an elastic loop, indicated in Fig. 2 by dotted lineson the inside of the garment which spans the neck I9, or by a ribbon lightly stitched at its ends to theinner side of the garment. In Fig. 3* the means of securing the mold form in place is indicated by loops 36 and 31 attached to the garment beneath which the outer free ends, such as 20, of the torso members and the pendent tab 28 may be slipped.

The bust support thus provided being made of a plastic like material is characterized by the fact that it is only semirigid and while it possesses the quality of being somewhat yieldable it maintains its original shape and when worn within a garment it preserves the so-called inner uplift imparting to the wearer those lines of firm molding qualities considered essential to figure perfection.

By providing such an instrumentality which is capable of being readily attached to an article of wearing apparel for women and likewise removable we have provided a means which obvia-tes the necessity of providing such articles with reinforcements such as the reinforcing stitched inserts employed in brassire cups which add an unnecessary bulkiness to the garment.

Frequent washings of a brassiere cause it to lose its original shape and by providing a permanently shaped separate mold form insertable therein we not only overcome this disadvantage but achieve the possibility of constructing the garment of extremely thin fabric and eliminate much if not all of the reinforcements required in the construction of brassieres while imparting thereto the appearance of loveliness resulting from a clinging glove like flawlessness.

What is claimed and desired to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. A bust support of thin moldable flexible and self sustaining material comprising similar complementary upper and lower parts each shaped respectively to conform with the contour of the under and lateral surfaces of a womans breasts and the adjacent torso, arched inner extremities extending toward each other from the proximate ends of the two torso members and overlapping I at their free ends, one of said inner extremities being apertured at its end and tabs on the other overlapping extremity cooperating with the aperture for pivotally connecting said extremities together.

2. The combination with a brassiere having: breast cups and a breast band, of a bust supporting element fitting within said cups each com-- posed of a flexible molded self sustaining material provided with inner and outer lobe portions shaped to the lower and lateral contours of a breast and having slots therein, said outer lobe being of greater length and depth than the inner lobe, ribbon loops passing through said slots and attached. to the brassiere cups, a torso engaging portion connected centrally to said elements and depending therefrom and having laterally extend:

ing inner and outer extremities, securing Icons on the brassiere embracing the outer extremities,- said inner extremities being arched upwardly to overlap at the median of the wearers body'and means for pivotally connecting said inner extremities together.

3. A bust supporter comprising a pair of members of thin mouldable flexible and self sustainingmaterial each comprising upper and lower parts shaped respectively to conform to the contour of the lateral and under surfaces of a womans breasts and the adjacent torso, the upper breast parts being provided with inner and outer lobes of unequal length and breadth, the torso en-' gaging portions being centrally connected at an angle to said upper breast parts by a narrow neck and having at their opposite lateral ends free extremities, said portions at their proximate ends being connected by a narrow upwardly extending arch and a finger portion depending beneath the center of said arch, said extremities and finger being for the purpose of attachment to a garment.

LESTER L. POLK. DOLLY M. POLK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,061,402 I-Iollar Nov. 17, 1 93s 2,391,417 I-Iill Dec. 25, 1945 2,429,680 Goddard Oct. 28, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 716,653 France Oct. 12, 50,264 France Oct. 24, 1939 

